MUMBAI - Aamir Khan's latest film, "3 Idiots," has become the
highest grossing Bollywood movie of all time, with strong showings at
home and abroad raising hopes for further cross-over hits for Indian
films.
The leading actor-producer-director wrote on his blog that box
office takings for the coming-of-age comedy had already surpassed those
for his 2008 hit "Ghajini," which was the previous record holder.
"In less than 10 days 3i has overtaken the ENTIRE business of
GHAJINI!!!! India, Overseas, everywhere!!! And is still going strong,"
Khan wrote Monday, describing himself as "fully overwhelmed and totally
humbled."
India's Business Standard newspaper said Tuesday that "3 Idiots" had
taken 2.4 billion rupees ($51 million) from the domestic and
international market since opening on December 25. "Ghajini" took 2.25
billion rupees.
Meanwhile www.hollywood.com
and Deadline Hollywood, which both track box office takings in the
United States, said "3 Idiots" has so far made 4.8 million dollars
after opening in nearly 120 US theaters.
No Bollywood film has crossed the $4-million threshold before.
The film's success has given Bollywood a boost, after a
disappointing 2009 marked by a damaging producers' boycott of multiplex
cinemas in a row over box office takings, swine flu fears and a string
of big budget flops.
The Business Standard said "3 Idiots" has so far made more money
than Bollywood's entire ticket receipts in November, which included the
hit "Ajab Prem Ki Gazab Kahani" (An Amazing Story Of Strange Love).
Indian box office takings are lower than in Hollywood because of lower ticket prices.
Film critics and industry analysts attributed the success of "3
Idiots" not just to Khan's star quality, but also high production
values, a sustained marketing campaign and the story's wide appeal.
A public row about how much the film was based on Chetan Bhagat's
best-seller "Five Point Someone," and a lack of other big-name
releases, may also have helped.
"It's a very well-made film with a message and with a big star. It
brings back memories of people's experience of the education system in
India," Taran Adarsh, from bollywoodhungama.com, said of the film's
overseas success.
"If you still have family here I think you identify with it all the more," he told AFP.
Mayank Shekhar, national cultural editor at The Hindustan Times
newspaper, said the same expatriate Indian "IT crowd" who bought "Five
Point Someone" appear to have flocked to US cinemas, boosting audiences.
"What's equally important is that it's not a preachy film. It's by
itself a complete comedy, which is what most mainstream audiences go
for," he said.
A well-constructed combination of a leading star, well-placed
song-and-dance routines and a message gave it "all the elements of a
Bollywood blockbuster," he added.
US film studios have been eyeing India's popular Hindi-language film
industry for several years, hoping to tap in to an expanding
2.3-billion-dollar market.
Hopes are high that Shahrukh Khan's upcoming film "My Name Is Khan" will match or even eclipse the success of "3 Idiots."
Fox Searchlight, which promoted the Oscar-winning film "Slumdog Millionaire," and other Fox units are handling distribution.
Adarsh said the overseas market is becoming increasingly important for Bollywood.
"The domestic market has traditionally been measured in rupees.
Today it's dollars, pounds, dirham, euros and various other
currencies," he said.
"It's not just the Indian diaspora. It's people in Pakistan,
Bangladesh, the Middle East. The success of '3 Idiots' is just the tip
of the iceberg."
